Easy pasta bake recipes

Summer may not seem like the ideal time for pasta bakes, but these recipes have a touch of blue skies about them and are super easy to knock up for children in need of an energy fix.

The boys are exhausted at the moment, Sam is currently working hard for his SATS at school and Arlo is just busy being Arlo which let me tell you is full-on! They both need waking up in the morning rather than hammering down our doors which is still freaking me out a bit!

So carbohydrate-rich comfort food is pretty ideal to keep them motoring…

Anyway enjoy the pictures and visit the links on the Good Food Channel website to get my recipes.

Baked gnocchi with spinach, tomato and mozzarella

Photograph by Sharron Gibson

This is easy and very cheesy, but also gets some iron-rich spinach into the mix. It’s a super tasty and quick supper to throw together for a busy weeknight.

This recipes packs a huge punch of flavour with the chunks of red pepper really soaking up the paprika from the chorizo. Leave out the chilli flakes if your little ones don’t like spice. I’d forgotten how delish chorizo is and will now be using it in everything – like toppings for home made pizzas.

Such a family classic, but adding cauliflower lightens things up a bit. Serving them up in individual dishes makes them appealing to children – just be careful to let them cool down enough first so little fingers don’t get burnt.

We’re still getting chilly evenings, and this twist on spag bol is perfect for warming your cockles. Breaking the spaghetti in half makes it easier to serve up and eat, and the crispy topped cheese and spinach sauce is a real treat.

I didn’t create the recipe for this final dish, but we needed to get a picture of it for the website. It was absolutely delicious and ridiculously easy to make. Ready-made gnocchi really is just one of the BEST express meals. This recipe is lifted by lemon zest in the creamy sauce with a hit of chilli – yum!